Ichi The Killer: Blood Pack

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All Rise...

Judge Adam Arseneau once considered getting his ears pierced. Now, after watching Ichi the Killer, he vomits uncontrollably whenever he sees a needle.

The Charge

Ai wa, kanari itai. (Love really hurts.)

Opening Statement

If ever a film could be considered notorious, Ichi the Killer fits the
profile to a tee. Groundbreaking through its constant exploration of shocking
violence, misogyny, sexual perversion and on-screen graphic carnage, Ichi rattled many a cinematic cage traversing the
oceans from Japan to North America. Based on the manga by Hideo Yamamoto and
directed by renowned and prolific Japanese cult director Takashi Miike (Audition, The Bird People in China, Black Society Trilogy, Gozu, Izo and about
six hundred other films), Ichi the Killer is a cinematic experience
unlike any other.

Just when you thought Ichi the Killer couldn't get any more
controversial, here comes Ichi the Killer: Blood Pack, which comes packed
in (yep, you guessed it) a big ol' bag of blood! With any other movie, such
gimmicky packing would be tasteless and puerile, but for Ichi the Killer
it makes perfect sense. Let us see if this two-disc Blood Pack improves
upon Media Blaster's previous single-disc release.

Facts of the Case

When the crime boss of the Anjo yakuza syndicate goes missing with a huge sum
of money, his right-hand man Kakihara (Tadanobu Asano, Zatoichi, Taboo) sets out on the streets to find him.
Calling Kakihara a masochist would be a serious understatement—he lives
for pain in all its forms, doled out in healthy doses by his employer. Now, with
Kakihara's primary source of pleasurable punishment unavailable, Kakihara hits
the streets to find his boss, part out of loyalty and part because nobody else
is merciless enough to fully satisfy him. It is Kakihara's turn to dish out some
pain, which he does with dizzying proficiency and merciless pleasure.

Kakihara soon learns of a mysterious hitman named Ichi (Nao Omori,
Vibrator) who may be responsible for Anjo's death as well as numerous
others in the city. After seeing the dismembered body parts left in Ichi's wake,
Kakihara finds himself fascinated with Ichi. Could he be the one who can deliver
him the pain he so desperately desires? His mind a-tingle with the thought of
their glorious showdown, he tracks Ichi, unaware that Ichi is hardly the
adversary Kakihara has made him out to be. A scared, confused and dysfunctional
teenager, Ichi is manipulated into violence by Jijii (auteur director Shinya
Tsukamoto, A Snake Of June, Vital, Tetsuo) who seeks nothing but the
complete and systematic destruction of the Anjo clan…

The Evidence

Director Takashi Miike's magnum opus, at least in terms of sheer infamy,
Ichi the Killer is an over-the-top explosion of sexual perversion,
sadism, torture, masochism, gore, violence, abuse and exploitation that
literally blew the backs of skulls out of audiences in Japan when released. The
Japanese had no idea what to do with the film, so they exported it to North
America, where it quickly rose to legendary cult status in horror circles.
Banned, edited, censored, stymied, vilified, condemned and rebuked the world
over, those who managed to get through Ichi the Killer without projectile
vomiting, crying or passing out became immediately divided on the subject of the
film's worth. Fans adore it as being a crowning gem of exploitation cinema,
pushing the boundaries of censorship in cinema further than ever before, while
critics whispered outrage between bouts of tears and vomiting, huddled together
in the corner of the room, passing out in piles of their own sick.

Oh sure, Takashi Miike is not quite the obscurity he one was, what with the
Interwebs and numerous public outpourings of praise by influenced genre
directors like Quentin Tarrantino and Eli Roth. In the horror industry, Miike
has more weight than a sumo champion, and most cinemaphiles have seen his work,
or heard enough pale-faced, shaky warnings against seeing his work. But back in
the day, Ichi the Killer appeared as unexpectedly as an atomic bomb in
downtown New York City to North American audiences. There was literally nothing
even close to it being created in this country—at least, nothing
legal.

The plot, such as it is, is secondary to the never-ending violence in
Ichi the Killer, a full-out three-ring circus of blood, torture, rape and
misogyny that literally paints the screen red with blood and white with semen.
As a buildup to an Ichi vs. Kakihara showdown, Ichi is an arguably miserable
protagonist, sniveling and whining and with enough personality issues to set a
psychoanalyst up with steady work for life. Despite being a notorious killer, he
cannot embrace his lifestyle, repressing issues stemming from deep-seeded
violence (both real and imagined) in his past, amplified by his employer. His
handler, cult director Shinya Tsukamoto in a solid performance, turns out his
standard poker-faced performance as the creepy weirdo in virtually all films he
acts in.

Despite the misleading title, the film's true star is Kakihara (played with
unrestrained glee by stone-faced Tadanobu Asano) who dominates every scene in
his garish pimp clothing and shockingly disfigured face. We follow Kakihara on a
quest for violence, first searching for Anjo and eventually pursuing Ichi, the
new provider of pain. Along the way, we are subjected to some of the most vile
and horrifying torture sequences ever put to celluloid, including the most
infamous sequence involving hanging a suspect by hooks in the skin of the back,
piercing him repeatedly with six-inch needles and pouring hot oil over his skin.
Some of the @#$% in this film will drop your jaw, no fooling.

Is Ichi the Killer is as violent, as misogynistic, as horrible as
people say it is? Hell yes, but there's a method behind the madness. With
Takashi Miike, there always is, but boy, does he make you work for them. Like
his North American contemporaries, similar auters like David Cronenberg and
David Lynch, Miike crafts vessels of discontent and anxiety, of deeply rooted
fears and repressions given shape and form. Taken at face value, Ichi is depraved and so over-the-top as to be
meaningless, but there is much more being told than a simple tale of yakuza
violence and abuse. Indeed, calling Ichi the Killer a "violent" film only
scratches the surface.

In Ichi we are offered more than simply violence for the sake of
violence (although there is certainly plenty of that.) Rather, Ichi is a
film about violence itself, a meditation on the nature of violence, how it
infects and influences people's needs and desires. The film is a rumination on
the nature of sadism and masochism and the inherent need for violence in the
lives of the film's protagonists, both for themselves and for those around them.
In Ichi and Kakihara we have two characters whose lives revolve around violence,
but whose motivations and desires are diametrically opposite. Good or bad,
violence is the central driving force behind every character in the film, like
gasoline fueling a car engine.

To take the metaphor further, Ichi the Killer involves us, the
audience, in the very thirst for violence that drives the protagonists. We are
participants in the horrible spiral of torture, rape and sadism throughout,
laughing at the over-the-top carnage during some sequences and wincing in utter
revulsion during others. Some violence is good, and some violence is bad, and
Ichi the Killer has both kinds in spades. Miike has created a film that
asks the viewer, quite directly, to reflect on how violence makes them feel.
Elated? Disgusted? Somewhere in between? Do we enjoy this cinematic violence
done to us or done to other people, or do we recoil in horror? Ichi the
Killer pushes the limits on censorship and over-the-top violence, but the
true battle is fought on a deeply personal level. This is the kind of film whose
images burn in your minds eye for months, even years after the fact; a film
where the viewer is so desensitized through constant portrayals of violence,
sex, abuse and torture that eventually, glee and amusement are the only natural
response left.

Or, to approach it another way: Ichi the Killer is about our own
messed-up society, about how we yearn for violence in all shapes and forms. As a
social group, we have a need for endlessly violent imagery through all its
media, both fiction and nonfiction, in our movies, our music, our news, et al.
Miike exploits this desire in Ichiby overloading every single one of our
senses until we have no idea what to think. By making violence the norm, and
moments of non-violence shocking and unexpected, we are set up for the biggest
joke of all.

Like a roller coaster ride, we are taken through scene after scene of
escalating brutality, climaxing into the glorious finale of…broken
expectations. Without spoiling anything, the ending sequence is much maligned by
fans as a complete and utter letdown; but this is actually the final act of
violence by Miike—this time against us. By twisting the end into something
atypical and unexpected, we are denied the climax, the almost orgasmic bloodbath
that no doubt we have come to expect during the film's near-endless escalations.
We build and build towards a magnificent finale, and then are denied that which
we have come to desire( even if only grudgingly). By withholding this release
from the audience, Miike plays the sadist one last time.

Truth be told, I could go on and on about the merits of this film, endlessly
break down themes, deconstruct the film to its most bare skeletal structure, but
to little end. Until you have seen Ichi the Killer yourself, the point is
moot. Horrifying and hilarious, it is a juggernaut of a film, rampaging through
audience expectations of censorship and preconceived notions of entertainment,
but a film that cannot be described at all in words. Good or bad, love it or
hate it, you owe it to yourself to see this film at least once and decide for
yourself the film's worth. You know, after you wipe the vomit up from your chin
and take a long, cold shower.

Media Blasters has already released a single-disc version of Ichi the
Killer, and to up the ante with the Blood Pack have served up a whole
pile of dismembered body parts and supplementary materials worthy of high
praise. The first disc is near-identical to the original single release,
containing the uncut feature film, some trailers, a photo gallery and a
commentary track with director Takashi Miike and manga artist/writer Hideo
Yamamoto. Both men speak in Japanese with an English commentary subtitle track
providing translation. The track is fantastic stuff, detailed and introspective,
though often distracting to read dialogue that fails to match the on-screen
action. The only new addition is a small interview with horror director Eli Roth
(Cabin Fever, Hostel) who spends seven
minutes gushing over Miike and his work. He acknowledges that films like
Hostel would never have come to be without the influence of Takashi Miike
upon his creative mind (he even puts Miike in Hostel with a quick cameo).
Media Shock clearly is trying to market the film to like-minded fans, as Roth's
name is splattered all over the packaging.

The transfer is essentially identical to the previous release, presenting
Ichi the Killer with a slightly murky transfer, nebulously indistinct black
levels, noticeable grain and washed-out colors. Unlike the previous release, the
Blood Pack is flagged for progressive scan, though it hardly makes a
difference here. Print damage is easily noticeable dotted throughout the film,
far more than one would expect from a film barely five years old. Colors are
often saturated to the point of distortion, especially reds. Outdoor shots fare
much better than low-light shots, which compose much of the film. Truth be told,
this is not a great looking presentation, but knowing Miike and his modus
operandi of low-fidelity fast shooting, this is probably as good as we can
expect this film to look on DVD.

As for audio, we practically get every option under the sun: both stereo and
5.1 English dubbed dialogue, as well as stereo and 5.1 Japanese tracks are
available to choose from. The Japanese 5.1 track is loud and well-defined, with
booming dialogue and strong front channels, with playful use of rear channels
for ambient noises and creeping effects. With every body blow, the bass channel
rumbles eagerly. The English variant is virtually the same, but dialogue is
mixed quieter and often harder to hear. The stereo tracks lack the fidelity and
impressive ambient effects of the surround, but gets the job done well enough.
The English dub is pretty lousy, but dubbing Kakihara in a faux-Cockney accent
is so hilarious it almost makes the English dub worth a listen. The music, an
out-of-control cacophony of pounding drums and incoherent screaming has the
frenetic pace of an acid-tripping bongo party gone into the wee hours of the
morning, and marries with the bizarre film perfectly.

On disc two, we get the new material, including a ten-minute interview
compilation entitled "The Cult of ICHI" featuring interviews with a diverse
cross-section of authoritative types, including horror writer Jack Ketchum (The Girl Next Door), Fangoria writer
Tony Timpone, actress Barbara Nedeljakova (Hostel) and others discussing
the influence and infamy of Ichi. We also get a fifty-minute making-of
featurette entitled "Memories of ICHI: The Making of Ichi the Killer"
goes behind the scenes during filming with cast and crew, and probably offers
the most value for the die-hard fan. It cracks me up to see how much fun
everyone was having making such a messed up film—you wonder if they
realized at the time what they were doing. In addition, a trailer reel for some
of Miike's other films is included, which is a treasure trove for Miike fans. A
mix of original Japanese and English trailers, ew get Fudoh, The Great Yokai War, Deadly Outlaw
Rekka, Izo, The Way To Fight,
Visitor Q, Family, One Missed Call, Bodygaurd
Kiba, Ichi the Killer and Silver.
These are fantastic if only to illustrate exactly how many genres Miike
explores—everything from sexual perversion to children's fantasy, new wave
Japanese horror to crazed yakuza crime sagas. Add to this a whole whack of
interviews, about an hours worth with producer Dai Miyazaki, actors Sabu and
Shinya Tsukamoto, Tadanobu Asano and Nao Omori in various combinations, and we
round out the material nicely. Each interview can be viewed separately or with a
"play all" feature. All in all, quite the solid offering of
material—definitely enough to entice purchasers of the single-disc version
to take a hard look at the Blood Pack.

The Rebuttal Witnesses

In an ironic twist of fate, the ultimate act of sadism committed in Ichi
the Killer: Blood Pack is by Media Blasters, upon the purchaser. In a sense,
this "blood pack" is the ideal packaging for such a sadistic, challenging and
masochistic film, because you have to suffer to even get the disc out of the
packaging. Oh, sweet irony. Sure, a hundred points for style in having a
freaking sack of stage blood masquerade as DVD packaging, but from a logistical
standpoint, Ichi the Killer: Blood Pack is cruelly unfair.

I offer one important nugget of advice to you, dear readers: do not puncture
the blood bag. Seriously, don't do it. I went over to Amazon and read customer
reviews trashing this DVD into zero and one-star oblivion, telling sordid tales
about how they tried to cut the blood bag to free the DVDs inside and ended up
with red blood juice all over their house, their clothes, the DVDs themselves
and in every bodily orifice possible. Hilarious reading material, the whole lot
of it, but for the sake of common sense, I reiterate: do not puncture the blood
bags. I assure you, your discs are not trapped behind layers of blood. The DVDs
are accessible via a pre-made slot in the side. There is no need to panic and
start attacking your DVD set frantically with a knife to "free" your DVDs.

Also (and thank you to Media Blasters for including this warning on the back
of the packing, or else I myself might have been tempted!) please do not drink
the contents of the aforementioned blood bag. Tempting, I know.

Closing Statement

Ichi the Killer: Blood Pack indeed stands out as the definitive
release of this film (blood bag-related issues aside). Die-hard aficionados will
no doubt yearn to upgrade to lay lands on the second disc full of extras (and
the blood bag, of course). However, for those okay skipping the supplements, the
single disc version is near-identical in all other regards. A small amount of
regret here; it would have been nice to see the film get a new remastered
presentation.

Whether you hate him or admire him, Takashi Miike is a cinematic force to be
reckoned with. You may not enjoy" Ichi the Killer, but that's perfectly
normal—only the most hardened S&M aficionados would enjoy the film in
connotations we commonly associate with the word "enjoy" Truth be told, I doubt
Miike even intended for us to enjoy Ichi the Killer, only to react to
it.

Films exist to stimulate emotional responses from their viewers, be them
happy or sad, and in the case of Ichi the Killer, some mild form of
flu-like nausea and disorientation. The layer of complexity, depth and
psychoanalysis in Ichi the Killer runs deep and dark, but only for those
brave enough to subject themselves to it.

The Verdict

Films like this don't come around every day, and for most people, this is a
good thing. But for this Judge, Ichi the Killer remains one of the most
challenging and rewarding cinematic horror experiences on the market today.